China tells US, North Korea to 'hit brakes' on threats

China wants US to halt military exercises on the Korean Peninsula in exchange for North Korea suspending nuclear tests.

16 Aug 2017 10:41 GMT

China has warned the United States and North Korea to "hit the brakes" on threats and actions, and work towards a peaceful resolution of their dispute.

Foreign Minister Wang Yi, in a phone conversation with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov on Tuesday, said the two countries should work together and contain tensions.

Russia and China should not permit any party to "stir up an incident on their doorstep", he said.

The warnings come after North Korea angered the international community by testing an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in late July, a move which saw Pyongyang slapped with new UN sanctions.

Meanwhile, China and Russia called for the US to suspend planned large-scale military exercises in exchange for North Korea suspending its missile and nuclear test as a first step towards direct talks.

Lavrov said the August 21 exercises could stoke tensions, according to China's foreign ministry.

He said a resolution of the dispute through military force was "completely unacceptable".

On Tuesday, North Korea said it had completed plans to test ballistic missiles near the US Pacific territory of Guam but would wait to see what the US did first.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in has urged the US not to launch an attack on the Korean Peninsula without its consent and said his government would prevent war by all means.

"Military action on the Korean Peninsula can only be decided by South Korea, and no one else can decide to take military action without the consent of South Korea," Moon said in a speech on Tuesday to commemorate the anniversary of the nation's liberation from Japanese military rule in 1945.

"The government, putting everything on the line, will block war by all means," Moon said.